Sam Ball has a Super Bowl ring on his finger from Baltimore's 1970 NFL championship and a plaque on his wall naming him the 1990 Kentucky Soybean Association's Man of the Year. Life has been good to the All-American tackle-turned-farmer, who has reaped...

As Ha'sean Clinton-Dix, the man they call Ha Ha, stood underneath the huge, digital billboard along Interstate 4 in Eatonville, he just shook his head.
"It's pretty amazing," he said, flashing his big, infectious smile.
The prediction is a little...

For Mark Keys, the pen is mightier than the scalpel.
Thirty-four surgeries on his back and legs, coupled with a host of other ailments, have left the onetime boat rigger unable to work and largely homebound since 1991.
His physical problems have led...

NFL quarterbacks won't like this class of pass rushers, but NFL general managers will like it very much. It's a strong group, both in terms of high-end talent and in terms of depth. As many as 10 defensive ends could be taken in the first two rounds.
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Legendary Orlando football player David 'Deacon' Jones died Monday evening at his home in Southern California. He was 74. Reports are that he died of natural causes.
Jones, who played at Eatonville's Hungerford High School prior to integration of Orlando city schools, was a member of the renowned Los Angeles Rams' Fearsome Foursome, with Merlin Olsen, Rosey Grier and Lamar Lundy, on his way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
An obscure 14th-round draft in pick in 1961, Jones came out of Mississippi...

Hall of Fame football player David "Deacon" Jones, one of the Los Angeles Rams' heralded Fearsome Foursome whose outspoken persona and relentless pursuit of quarterbacks helped turn defensive linemen into stars, died Monday of natural causes at his home in Anaheim Hills. He was 74.
His death was confirmed late Monday by his stepson Greg Pinto.
Jones, who played for the Rams from 1961 to '71 and later for the San Diego Chargers and Washington Redskins, was the league's top defensive player in 1967...

That one of the largest pro football players of his era now owns three restaurants isn't surprising. But how did Roger Brown shed 50 pounds doing it?
"My goal now is to sell the food, not eat it," said Brown, 76, who played at Maryland State before starring with the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams in the 1960s.
A restaurant/sports bar in Portsmouth, Va., where he lives bears his name. Brown, a onetime 300-pound All Pro defensive tackle, also owns establishments in Williamsburg and Newport News....

Michael Sam Sr. says his comments about his son being gay were taken out of context and don't represent his true beliefs.
In a New York Times interview Tuesday, Sam was quoted as saying that “I don’t want my grandkids raised in that kind of environment."
He added: “I’m old school. I’m a man-and-a-woman type of guy.”
And that Hall of Famer Deacon Jones “is turning over in his grave” at the idea of an openly gay man in the league.
Sam's son, Michael...

When NFL prospect Michael Sam came out publicly as gay Sunday, he was largely applauded for his honesty and bravery by everyone from NFL players, coaches and executives to the Obamas.
Sam's father had received the news several days earlier. His reaction wasn't nearly as enthusiastic.
Michael Sam Sr. was celebrating his birthday at a Denny's near his home outside Dallas on Feb. 4 when he got a text message from his son.
The All-American defensive lineman out of Missouri wrote: Dad, I’m gay....

This past Sunday on Groller's Corner, I mentioned the unique concept Pro Football Talk on the NBC Sports Network is using to identify a Mount Rushmore for each NFL team. They're calling it "Faces of the Franchise." I think it's a fascinating topic -- narrowing